There would be basically two kinds of jobs in
the insurance sector-front-end jobs like sales and marketing,
distribution, operations, and human resource management, and, the back-end
ones, like actuarial work, claim-processing, and underwriting. The career
potential at both ends are huge.

What kind of skills-both hard and soft-are
required to make a career here?

Hard skills would obviously include knowledge
of the insurance business in general and specialised knowledge in the case
of actuarial and claim-related functions. In sales and marketing jobs, a
thorough understanding of marketing and distribution is essential. For all
positions, a sound knowledge of finance and strong operational expertise
are a must. The soft skills required would be good communication and
inter-personal skills.

What kind of background is desirable for
employees?

Pools of skill are available in the PSUs,
namely LIC and GIC, and the migration has already started. For sales and
marketing, an FMCG background is desirable. For other functions like
operations, finance, and hr, experience in banks, NBFCs, and service
industries (including healthcare) would be preferred.

In terms of career progression, what kind
of potential will this sector offer?

In one word, huge. Worldwide, insurance is
regarded as a big-ticket sector in terms of remuneration and career
opportunities and India would be no exception. Almost all the players have
deep pockets, and the sort of churn one is seeing in dot.coms, for
instance, is unlikely to happen here. So, careers in insurance will be
more stable.

CEO; Indian Subsidiary of a leading
transnational group; Around Delhi; B.E./B. Tech from a reputed institute
with 15-20 years of relevant experience, preferably in the compressor
manufacturing industry.
e-mail: sheraton@vsnl.com

Senior Manager (Insurance); Leading
diversified group for their companies engaged in the insurance business;
East/Central Africa; Graduate with specialisation in insurance with
relevant experience of 12-15 years, and in the age group of 35-40 years;
Aries export, Bakhtwar, 11th floor, Nariman Point, Mumbai-400021.

Secure your
career with insurance! For, the Rs 32,000-crore sector is a huge,
albeit untasted, meal of an opportunity. And with the government
opening up the sector, several would-be players are waiting in the
wings. Around 20 companies, including global behemoths like the
US-based Chubb Corporation and Nationwide Mutual Insurance, Dutch
Aegeon Insurance, France's Cardif, and Australian Colonial, are
queued up. And, the rewards could be rich despite the capital
intensive nature of the business and a long gestation period,
given the predictions of the Boston-based Monitor Company, which
sees at least 30 players in life insurance and 20-odd in general
insurance in India.

Thus, around 20,000 jobs may
be created in the sector in the next two years. Jobs will be
available in functions ranging from sales and marketing,
underwriting, risk management and actuarial practices. Though the
new companies are likely to be based in the big cities, they could
still be hiring around 100 people each, apart from agents. That's
a lot of jobs...

This fledgling sector is already a big
draw in the employment market, considering the big-ticket remunerations
offered and the excitement of working in a start-up. Star managers like
Anuroop 'Tony' Singh, the erstwhile CEO of ANZ Grindlays and R. Shyam
Sundar, the former marketing head of Smithkline Beecham, are among those
who have taken the plunge. Do you have what it takes?

You need to peddle insurance. So, good brand
management and distribution expertise is essential in sales and marketing
positions. Translated, it means that a background in FMCG or consumer
durables is ideal. Experience in an insurance PSU like LIC or GIC would
also be valuable, provided it has adequate depth.

For other functions, professional
qualifications and relevant experience, preferably in a transnational
environment, is desirable.

In specialised functions like actuarial
practices and risk management, functional knowledge is a must. Practising
actuaries would also need certification from institutes of actuarial
practices.

Underwriting would need a strong
understanding of finance and insurance and a fair degree of medical
knowledge.

Agents have to be a different breed, with
computer-savviness and a knowledge of finance.

For all positions, strong communication and
analytical skills and a willingness to learn are essential.

Positions

The Top Level: CEOs,
COOs, CFOs, head of sales and marketing, head of hr, chief of actuarial
practice.Qualifications: Graduate from a top B-school for CEO and other
functional positions, along with extensive professional experience.
Relevant qualification from the Institute of Actuarial Practices, coupled
with functional experience for actuarial positions.Compensation: Rs 40-65 lakh

The Middle Level:
General managers/vice-presidents in operations, marketing, distribution,
finance, hr, actuarial operations, underwriting, riskmanagement and
claim-processing.Qualifications: MBA for the functional positions with relevant
experience. Professional qualifications and experience for the actuarial
positions.Compensation: Rs 15-30
lakh

Mother Hens
Talent breeds talent. Which is why incubators the world over attract the
best and the brightest. Now, the trend is catching on here. A brand new
incubator, set up by a US-based venture capital fund and tentatively
entitled AtIndia (@India), has just gone and hired a veritable galaxy of
stars. The head, R. Kannan, has had a glittering career in GE Capital in
India as the CEO, before being poached. Its marketing head is none other
than the suave Kanwaljeet Singh, formerly general manager (marketing) at
Intel India. Singh had resigned some time ago and was keeping his
destination a closely-guarded secret. The start-up has also roped in
Saikat Bhattacharya, a long-time Motorola hand based at the
transnational's Bangalore headquarters, to head its hr. That's quite a
team. and a little bird told us that it was the Mumbai-based search and hr
consulting firm Shilputsi that did the placements and raked in the moolah!
Now, will these managers be able to clone their success in cyberspace?
Watch this space...

Re-Do ItFrom peddling liquor to hawking
shoes. Is that a move up or down? Well, in the case of Hemchandra 'Hemu'
Javeri, the former vice-president (sales & marketing) at UB Group, it
certainly is an upwardly mobile progression. Javeri is joining Nike, the
global sportswear giant, as its Chief Operating Officer in India. And will
perhaps apply his skills to shore up Nike's operations, and improve its
standing in the marketspace and the mindspace (both of which haven't
exactly been the stuff to write home about). In India, Nike's famed global
competitors Reebok and Adidas have zoomed past it due to their first-mover
advantage. Well, as the company's famous punch-line goes, Javeri just did
it. But will Nike follow suit and re-do its act here?

Foodie Zone
There is something about food surely. Otherwise, why would the fledgling
food industry attract managers, well, like flies? Prem Pradeep, who has
had a long and distinguished career spanning Pepsi, Arvind Mills-where he
headed the US operations-and a US-based software firm, has joined Food
World, an RPG Group-owned chain of supermarkets that has been making waves
in the South. Sanjiv Goenka, whose baby it is, reportedly has ambitious
plans for the chain. And Pradeep will help him execute them, no doubt.

PostscriptProfessional services major Ernst & Young (E&Y)
has been going through a rough patch in India! First, it had to weather
the storm created by a plagiarised report relating to a power project in
the South-something that caused the company a lot of embarrassment. Now,
it faces the prospect of vanishing employees-from its hr practice. Most
senior people are leaving for greener pastures. Know why? Ever since
E&Y sold its consulting practice to Cap Gemini, the fate of the hr
practice has been hanging in balance. The official line is that E&Y
wants to keep the division and rename it as advisory services. But
insiders are not too sure and are opting for the safer exit route. A pity,
considering that it was a flourishing practice...

A Resource SolutionThe bad days are over it seems! Baan, the global
provider of ERP solutions, went through rough times and was finally bought
over by Invensys Software Systems Division, one of the world's largest
software and systems integration companies. Now, in a bid to focus on its
India operations, the company has appointed Gopal Madnani as its CEO here.
Madnani, an infotech professional with more than two decades of experience
with biggies like Tata Infotech, will be responsible for sales, marketing,
consulting, and support in India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. BaaN there;
done that.

HELP,
TARUN!!!

I am a commerce graduate with a good
academic record. I plan to enrol in an MBA programme at the end of the
year. Although I am confident of cracking the exam, I am confused about
the choice of specialisation. I want to take up finance, but my family and
friends are advising me to go for marketing. I don't think I have the
behavioural attributes to excel in marketing. What should I do?

Almost all mba programmes have a first-year
curriculum that includes all subjects and is common for all students,
irrespective of the specialisation they opt for. You could go through the
first year to get a better understanding of the various disciplines in
management, and even wait for summer placement before deciding on your
specialisation. Personality-wise, to rise up the corporate ladder you will
have to develop inter-personal and leadership skills, irrespective of your
function.

I am a final-year civil engineering
student. I have already got a job through campus placement with a renowned
software company. However, I plan to appear for B-school entrance exams
after my graduation. In that case, my career will start only after two
years, but the remuneration and prospects will probably be better. The job
at hand, though, seems exciting, especially as it involves training in
Silicon Valley. Should I take up this job and go ahead for a career in
software or should I aim for an MBA and wait for a more lucrative job
offer?

If you gain admission to a B-school, it will
be better to acquire the qualification first. Later, it may be difficult
to extricate yourself from a job. Alternatively, you could target a year
or two of work experience and then go for an MBA. This time will allow you
to figure out whether you want a career in software or not. However, a
bird in hand is worth two in the bush and if you get admission to a top
B-school (something you may not get later), you should take it up. You can
always get a job in a software company even after your MBA.

I am a 26-year-old mechanical engineer and
have been teaching the subject for four years. I have also completed a
diploma course in business finance. I now want to switch to the corporate
field as academics offers me neither job satisfaction nor a bright future.
I want to make a career in project finance where I will be able to
leverage my engineering skills and my knowledge of finance. How do I go
about this? I am not located in a metropolis and this is also a problem.

You could try to get employment with project
management companies (or companies involved in construction and
commissioning of large plants). Or, you could apply to manufacturing
companies that are expanding or diversifying. You could also seek
employment in the planning function. Not being in a metropolis is a
disadvantage. However, if you are willing to relocate, you need to keep
applying to the jobs described.

I am a 43-year-old commerce graduate
working as a marketing manager in a small concern. I have over 20 years of
experience, of which 17 have been in sales and marketing. Unfortunately,
both the companies I have worked for so far faced industry downturns and
went under. Further, both the positions were in the sewing thread/twines
industry, which has limited my prospects further. The present job does not
satisfy me. How do I go about reviving my career? I am not getting any
opening. Is my age becoming an obstacle for me? Should I do an on-the-job
MBA? Is there any other course that I can pursue to help me revive my
sagging career?

Your experience in the threads and twines
industry could be useful in other industries. You should apply to
companies that specialise in consumer durables, paints, non-industrial
adhesives and chemicals, and plywood. You could get an on-the-job MBA and
that will definitely enhance your knowledge and equip you better for the
job. However, a part-time MBA is not considered at par with a full-time
one, so do not expect a dramatic difference to your career.